Destiny: Capstan of Fate
by Sir Lick You
Summary: "The loneliest moment in someone's life is when they are watching their whole world fall apart, and all they can do is stare blankly." - F. Scott Fitzgerald. The world, or what is left of it, revolves around the actions of one man. In the end, he will be defined as either humanity's greatest hero or their worst enemy. {Reviews are extremely appreciated.}
1. Segment One

**My first long-term fanfiction. I'm not sure how far I want to take this, but I plan to do quite a bit more than what I've got. I tried my best to ensure all of my lore was on point, and should you find any mistakes, please let me know. I'm open to future plot ideas, but I've got most of the story planned out as it is. I'd also like to give credit to my writing partner, a friend known as C.J., who helped me with not only the plot but a lot of the lore. Anyhow, enjoy!**

Dramatis personæ for Destiny: Capstan of Fate

Segment 1

Maren Wolcott – Guardian – Male Human Titan

Mijael Armen – Former Guardian – Male Human Titan

Syman Wolcott – Guardian – Male Human Hunter

Prophet – Guardian – Male Exo Warlock

Krea Tyren – Guardian – Female Awoken Titan

Cordesseye Varnyx – Guardian – Male Awoken Hunter

Aegis-9 – Pre-Collapse Soldier – Male Exo [Titan]

Augur-7 – Pre-Collapse Officer – Male Exo [Warlock]

"Guardians can be revived, Fallen cannot. Guardians can be revived, the Hive cannot. Remember this, during your patrols. You cannot die, so long as your ghost remains with you." The instructor paused, shifting his gaze towards the crowd of soon-to-be Guardians. "But, this does not make you immune to pain. If you get shot, you will feel it, and what you feel will be pain."

The instructor's ghost appeared at his shoulder and homed in on the computer terminal. A diagram of a Fallen shock rifle was projected onto the white wall. The instructor pointed at certain parts of the weapon, explaining them in detail. "This is weapon deals arc damage via three slow-moving projectiles of arc light. If it hits you, it will burn."

"Excuse me, instructor."

"Speak, Guardian."

"The Fallen are nothing. My older brother, he's seen Vex. Killed 'em too." The class began begging for answers from the young man in the front row. The instructor folded his arms across his chest as the class's volume reached an unholy state of cacophony.

Suddenly there was a noise like a gunshot – a massive booming sound silenced the lips of the students. The instructor's fist hit the wall a final time before he stopped. The class was silent.

"Step forward, Guardian." The instructor said, pointing at the student who had first broken the silence. The young man rose up and walked toward the instructor. "When you return to your home today, you will ask your brother how terrifying the Vex are, and then, you will compare them to me."

"I don't think I follow, sir."

The instructor smiled, as though his prey had walked into his trap. "Let me clarify." The instructor pulled the hand cannon from his hip and put the barrel to the student's thigh. He pulled the trigger and the room was illuminated in a blue light for a second. The student screamed out loud and fell to the floor, holding his leg.

The instructor holstered his hand cannon and turned to the rest of the class. "Understand?" Each and every student nodded rapidly in reply.

FOUR MONTHS EARLIER

"Prophet, cover me!" A Guardian yelled from under his helmet and cloak. He was crouched behind a low, cement wall. Should the Guardian put his head up, a red bolt of pure light energy would slam into his skull, killing him upon impact.

"On it." Was the reply from Prophet, who was clothed in a torn and dirty red jacket. Prophet vaulted the red rock that was his cover and drew up his auto-rifle. He let loose a spray of bullets, inaccurate, but effective in drawing the attention off of his comrade.

"Wolcott, now!" Prophet's comrade, Wolcott, jumped up from his low cover and threw a grenade that pulsed with orange solar energy. There was a fiery explosion that launched a whirlwind of red sand from the ground. As the dust settled back in its place, the beat and broken bodies of the Vex were revealed.

"Nice work." Wolcott said to Prophet. Prophet nodded and removed his helmet.

"You too." Prophet's ghost appeared near his shoulder. "Let's head back to orbit." Suddenly Prophet's starship swooped over them. As it passed, Prophet dematerialized and reappeared inside the cockpit of his ship.

Wolcott smiled, retrieved his rifle from where it lay behind the low cement wall and summoned his ship.

Wolcott's body materialized in the courtyard of the Tower, home to all Guardians. Prophet was there to greet him. "How's Maren?"

"He's decided he wants to be a Guardian."

"When's his training start?"

"In a few months." Wolcott replied. Prophet nodded.

"I'll be back in a moment, my friend. I have some items for Master Rahool."

"Alright, see you soon."

PRESENT DAY

"Syman, your brother is under medical watch." Wolcott's mother said.

"What? Why?" Wolcott asked. He felt his anger boiling over inside of him.

"There was an incident at the academy today… They won't tell me anything. Talk to them, please."

"Alright, I'll be back." He said. Wolcott hugged his mother and grabbed his cloak, wrapping it around his neck. He stormed from the homestead, summoning his ship and heading for the Tower.

He found his little brother, Maren, on one of the lower floors in the Tower. He seemed fine, but the intense burn on his leg proved otherwise. "Syman!" Maren exclaimed when his brother walked in.

"Maren, what happened?" Syman asked with intensity.

"I told the instructor about how weak the Fallen were, compared to the Vex."

"And how the hell could you even make that judgment, kid?"

"You always tell me stories about how you fight Fallen and Vex and the like. I figured I'd share with the instructor." Maren smiled and leaned back, wincing at the pain in his thigh.

"Maren, that still doesn't explain why you have intense burns all over your thigh."

"Oh, right. The instructor… he, uh…"

"Maren, screw whatever they told you to do. Tell me, I'm your older brother. I can help."

"Syman, they told me they wouldn't make me a Guardian if I told anyone what happened."

"Tell me, dammit!" Suddenly one of the medical assistants grabbed onto Syman's bicep.

"Mister Wolcott, I'm afraid I'll have to ask you to leave."

"Screw you!" He pushed the assistant. "Maren, tell me!"

"The instructor shot me." The room fell silent. Syman's eyes grew wide with rage.

"I'll kill him." Syman pushed away and out the doorway.

"Syman, no, wait!" Maren called. The medical assistance tried to chase him down, but wasn't fast enough. Syman Wolcott was about to make a decision that could affect his entire future.

The door slid open before Syman. He shoved a desk over to reach the instructor. "Excuse me, young man, but what do you-" Syman grabbed him by his shirt and slammed him against the wall.

"Did you shoot my brother?

"Ah, I presume you to be Mister Wolcott's older brother. The one who fears no enemy, slayer of Vex, mocker of the Fallen?"

The words did not phase Syman. "Did you shoot my brother?"

The instructor laughed. "I enforced my strict rules, that is all." Syman pushed the man up against the wall harder than before. The instructor hardly showed any sign of pain or discomfort.

"Did you shoot my brother!" Syman screamed, turning the phrase into more of an accusation than a question.

The instructor's dry lips curved into a defiant smile. "Yes, I did indeed." Within a second of the man's response, Syman flung him at the wall. The instructor pulled his hand cannon from his holster and aimed it at Syman. By the time Syman could materialize his rifle, he'd be dead, and the instructor could destroy his ghost all too easily then.

"You'll have to forgive me, Mister Wolcott. It is my duty to instruct Guardians on the rules of their occupation and you seem to have forgot your lessons on etiquette. I'll remind you, as I did your brother."

Just as the instructor tensed up to fire, Wolcott slid his knife from its sheathe and whirled it across the room. It sailed at the man's gun and knocked the weapon from his hand.

"No one needs to get hurt anymore."

"Only the bad Guardians, my boy, and you seem to fit that list." The door slid open and there were two Titan Guardians, led by Commander Zavala, the Titan Vanguard.

"Syman Wolcott, I hereby discharge you from the ranks of the Guardians. You are to surrender your ghost and submit to fair trial in the eyes of the Traveler and its Speaker."

Syman realized he was outnumbered. He put his hands up. "Right." His ghost materialized and began to hover towards Zavala. The Vanguard raised his hand cannon and shot the ghost. A shock of pain hit Syman. That ghost and him had been through a lot together.

"And justice is served." The instructor remarked.

Zavala pointed a finger at him. "You're not in the clear either, Mijael. You shot an academy trainee and attempted to keep it secret. I have also been ordered to relieve you of your duties as an instructor and remove your ghost from your possession."

The instructor grunted. "If you must." He summoned his ghost and looked away as it was shot to pieces by the Vanguard.

"Take them to the holding cells, I'll meet with the Speaker about a proper trial."

Syman Wolcott was dragged away and imprisoned in the Tower's holding cells, home of the crazy, the wicked and the misunderstood.

TWO WEEKS LATER

"I still don't get it." Wheezed the old man in the corner of the cell. He wore dirty and aged armor that was long outdated.

"Neither do I." Syman muttered from where he lay on the cot.

"Instructor-man gets to shoot little brother and when big brother goes to knock some sense into instructor-man, big brother gets arrested? On a charge of assault, nonetheless! The stupid bastard had it coming." The old man exclaimed, coughing afterwards.

"Yeah. I never asked why you were locked up, old man."

"Long story."

"I'm not going anywhere." Syman said, chuckling afterwards. After the old man finished his coughing fit, he leaned up against the wall.

"It all started about fifty, maybe seventy years ago. I was a Guardian, given a simple task on Mars." The old man stood up and sat on the cot opposite of Syman. "This is just after the Black Garden was found, you know? Anyway, the Guardian who found it didn't have much to report about it besides the overwhelming number of Vex inside. The Speaker personally asked me to take two of my most trusted Guardian companions to investigate the Garden, and so we went…"

"Ashmara, scout ahead, I'll cover you." The Warlock nodded and mounted her sparrow. The Hunter drew his sniper rifle and laid down behind a rock, keeping Ashmara in his sights.

"Looks like some Cabal. Probably just a patrol. I'll drop one, you take the other." The Hunter said.

"Got it. On you." Ashmara replied, crouching behind a rock. The Hunter fired and Ashmara popped up, shooting the other Cabal with her hand cannon.

"You're clear. We'll rendezvous up ahead." The Hunter strapped his sniper rifle on his back and grabbed his pulse rifle. "Keane, let's move." He said to the Titan who was fiddling with some insects.

They mounted their sparrows and met up with Ashmara, who had taken cover. "What is it?" The Hunter asked, dismounting.

"There's a dead Guardian over there. It could be a trap…"

"No, there's nothing here to trap us. Those Cabal were just some scouts who got lost. Let's check it out." The Hunter mounted his sparrow and rode up to the body, his comrades beside him.

"Keane, check it out, we'll cover you." The Hunter ordered, watching the cliffs above. As the Titan touched the body, his hand phased through it and the body disappeared.

"It's a hologram." The Titan Exo said.

"Marcus, on the cliff!" Ashmara yelled. The Hunter turned around and saw a Cabal fire off a shot, the projectile slamming into Keane-7's head. "Keane!" Ashmara yelled.

"We've got to go!"

"His ghost can revive him!"

"We don't have time!" Marcus grabbed Ashmara by her arm and looked at her. "Trust me." Ashmara nodded and they mounted their sparrows, fleeing the ambush.

As they flew out of the canyon and into the Martian sands, Marcus's ghost updated its navigation. "We've entered the Valley of the Kings."

"We're close."

"No, we're here." Marcus said, pointing at the big Vex ring, half buried in the sand.

"That must be the gate."

"And that means there'll probably be guards." Marcus remarked as the dismounted. The Vex began firing at them. As they finished off the last of the Vex, Ashmara approached the gate.

"The Guardian who came here last reported that there were a lot more Vex than this."

"After he destroyed whatever's inside there, I doubt the Vex had a reason to guard this place. These few are probably just acting on instinct."

"Right." Ashmara replied. Suddenly, their vision began to blur as a bright light blinded them.

"The gate… it's opening!" Marcus said. "Go!" They both ran into the gate, their vision going dark for a moment. As if drawn from a sleep, they seemingly awoke in a strange ruin.

"Looks like the ruins on Venus." Ashmara said, touching one of the walls.

"Let's keep moving. If this isn't the Garden, we're close." Marcus said. Ashmara nodded and followed behind him.

Eventually they came across a central chamber. "The Vex here… They're stuck in stasis, it would seem."

"Ashmara, we're not here for the old, decrepit Vex, we're here for the Garden." Ashmara nodded, sighed and followed Marcus.

Suddenly they heard the war cry of the Vex as the Vex in stasis popped to life and began to fight. There were so few – whoever came before wiped out most of them.

After a small fight, all fell silent. There was a frozen Vex Minotaur in the center of the chamber, stationary. "Ashmara, deactivate that thing. Just in case."

"On it." Ashmara began to tinker with the wires inside, trying to shut the Minotaur's mind off for good. Then its red eye lit up. "Marcus, something's wrong!"

"I know!" He yelled as a small horde of Vex entered the room.

"Marcus!" Ashmara yelled. The Minotaur grabbed her and threw her at the wall. Marcus ran to her. "There's too many… I'll hold them off. Run, please."

"No! If I leave you, they could destroy your ghost or, or they could-" Ashmara put a finger to Marcus's lips.

"I love you, Marcus Radcliffe. And I always will. Please. Run. For me." Marcus sighed and nodded.

"I love you too." He said, half-sobbing. He drew his rifle and shot two Vex near them.

"Now go!" Ashmara pushed him and stood up, shooting the Vex. Marcus snuck around the horde, moving fast and staying low. As he left the chamber he heard a loud explosion and Ashmara screaming. Another shot went off and the room fell silent. The Vex would be coming for him next…

"How'd you make it out?" Syman asked, completely sucked in to the story.

"Part of me didn't, boy. Part of me died with Ashmara in those ancient ruins."

"Did she survive? Did you find your Exo friend? What did the Speaker say?"

"The Speaker sent a team led by one of the Vanguards. A big risk, but a necessary one. All they found was Ashmara's ghost and her body. Both were dead. Keane-7 was never found. The Vanguard saw no Vex, not even any in stasis. They assumed I killed Ashmara and Keane-7, and held a trial. I was convicted and sentenced to life in this cell."

"That's bullshit!" Syman exclaimed.

"I get the feeling you're about to understand just what sort of bullshit flies here in the Tower."

Syman made a confused face and Marcus the old man pointed to the cell door. Commander Zavala stood in the doorway. "Syman Wolcott, it's time for your trial."

"I didn't do anything!" Syman screamed.

"You assaulted the instructor."

"And he shot my brother, what was I supposed to do?"

"Let the Vanguard handle it." Zavala replied, straight-faced as ever. Rage boiled inside Syman.

"I'll show you bastards how _real_ Guardians handle it." Marcus said. He slammed his fist into Zavala's face, causing the Vanguard to stumble back. Marcus then tackled Zavala. "Run, boy! Run!"

"But you'll-"

"Dammit Syman, run!" Syman nodded and took off down the hallway. Two Titans blocked the exit. Syman took a deep breath and leap upwards, kicking one in the head. He used the Titan's head to boost himself at the door. He soared through the doorway and did a roll.

When he popped up, he kept running. The other Titan was hot on his heels, shouting threats. Suddenly the lights in the hallway turned red and began to flash. "We have an escaped prisoner on the holding cell floor, I am issuing a lockdown. I repeat, escaped prisoner, I am issuing a full lockdown of this level."

The door to the hangar began to slide shut and when it did shut, it would lock. Syman slipped through the small opening and tumbled onto the hangar floor. The door shut before the Titan could get through.

In the hangar were many dismantled ships, with a few that had only sustained minor tinkering at the hands of the Tower's engineers. Luckily for Syman, his ship was one of those few.

He slipped past the gaze of the engineers, using the other ships and scrap metal as cover. Suddenly the doors to the prison cells slid open. Commander Zavala entered with a squad of Titans at his back.

They began questioning the engineers, but all of them denied ever seeing Syman.

Finally, Wolcott reached his ship. Zavala was fast approaching, and Syman had no time to inspect the damage the engineers had done to his vessel. "Orbit." He whispered.

Nothing happened.

Then it hit him – he had no ghost. As of this moment, he was no longer even a Guardian. "Screw it." He muttered as he scrambled up the side of the ship and manually opened the cockpit.

Standing atop his ship made him easy to spot and just as Syman expected, Zavala spotted him.

"Permission to use lethal force! Do not let him leave this hangar!" Zavala screamed as he put his helmet on.

Syman closed the cockpit and began pushing the controls. He hadn't manually piloted a ship since the academy, when he was trained to do so in case his ghost wasn't alive to do it for him.

The ship's engine turned on after a bit of button mashing, and he was able to maneuver it out of the hangar. The Vanguard began to fire at his ship, doing a small amount of damage. Syman wasn't worried until one of the Titans drew a rocket launcher.

Syman needed to get out of the Tower, quickly. Unsure about how far he could make it, he plotted a course for Venus and made the interplanetary jump.

It wouldn't be long before they put bounties out for him. Syman never imagined that he would ever be stripped of his status, branded a traitor and be hunted by his comrades.

There was so much left unanswered. What happened to Marcus, Syman wondered. Would he ever see his mother again? What about Maren?

The surge of thoughts on Syman's mind were enough to gently ease him into sleep.

The cockpit lit up with a red light. Something was wrong. He tried to look out the cockpit windows and saw nothing but smoke. The engine had failed. "Damn those engineers…" He cursed, trying to keep the ship under control.

Suddenly, all fell quiet. "Destination reached." His ship's navigation system stated. Then the ship grazed the side of a cliff and began to roll once it hit the ground. It slammed into a massive tree and what little power the ship had left was depleted.

Syman pressed the manual cockpit release button and stumbled out of his ship, onto the grassy soil of Venus. The air was heavy and humid, as always. Syman pulled his cloak over his helmet and began to walk.

EARLIER

The Vex fell to the ground, a knife in its red eye. A gloved hand reached down and tore the blade from its head. "And that's that." The man said as he sheathed the knife.

The man put a finger to the side of his helmet, activating his communicator. "Krea, are you clear?"

"All good. I'll meet you near the Shattered Shore?"

"Sounds good, see you there." The man let his hand fall back down to the grip of his rifle. The cold, jagged grip reminded him of his battles in the depths of Earth's Moon, cutting down a seemingly endless horde of the Hive. This weapon was his prize for his slaughter.

He summoned his sparrow and headed for the Shattered Shore, where Krea, his partner, would be waiting. He slowed his sparrow near hers. "Find anything good?"

"Not really. I've got a few things the Cryptarch could look at for me, but nothing else."

"Let's head back to the Tower, then."

"Cordesseye, look. Krea pointed past the Hunter's face at a ship falling from the sky." Cordesseye looked at the falling spacecraft.

"Looks like a Guardian ship." He muttered. The ship slammed into the ground, creating a cloud of dust and smoke. "We should check it out."

"Right."

The two took off on their sparrows, heading for the crash site.

As they arrived, they saw the wreckage. Krea climbed inside to examine it as Cordesseye looked around the outside of the ship.

"It's dead. Engine was stripped, it seems."

"Stripped? Scavengers couldn't have come and gone that fast…"

"No, you're right… This is Tower-work."

"You mean…"

"This ship belongs to the impound lot."

Suddenly there was an alert tone within Cordesseye's helmet. It wasn't just a bounty update, it was an actual message from the Vanguard. "This is Commander Zavala, the Titan Vanguard. I am issuing a kill/capture order on Syman Wolcott, a former Guardian. He has been charged with treason against the Tower, its denizens and the Traveler. There is a large reward awaiting any who return him… or part of him."

"Sounds serious…" Krea said, climbing down from the ship.

"Let's find this guy, then." Cordesseye said, heading into the jungle, motioning for her to follow.

They stopped just before a clearing. There was a cloaked man sitting on a rock, tending to his wounds.

"This is the guy." Cordesseye said. "Take the shot."

"And if it's not?" Krea argued.

"Who else could it be? Take the shot!" He whispered back.

"Fine." The Titan lifted her auto-rifle up to her shoulder. When she looked down the sights, the man was no longer there. "What the hell?" She looked to Cordesseye. He was completely still. "What is it? Where is he?" Then she noticed the knife at his neck.

"I don't want to kill you. I don't even want to hurt you. Whatever Zavala has told you, it's a load of crap. You have to trust me." The man said from behind Cordesseye.

"Trust you? You've got a knife at my friend's throat… No thanks."

There was a shuffle in the brush behind her.

"Just trust me." The man pleaded.

"No." Krea responded. Suddenly, Cordesseye broke free from the man's grasp and aimed his rifle at him. And then the brush broke to reveal a man in a ripped up red jacket. He wielded a devilish pulse rifle, adorned with the bones of dead creatures.

"Do as he says, and you will be free from harm." The man in the red jacket said.

"Why should we trust you?" Cordesseye said.

"I am Prophet, a Warlock Guardian. I was created by my brothers of flesh to serve and protect the citizens of the Traveler, which I did efficiently until the Collapse. I watched humanity fall. I watched Guardians turn into savages, and I assure you, this man is not a savage. I trust him, and you should as well."

"Prophet? The legendary Prophet?" Krea asked, dumbfounded.

Prophet nodded slowly, lowering his rifle. "We are on the same side."

"Yeah, we are." Cordesseye lowered his rifle. "Tell me why your friend here is wanted by the Titan Vanguard, Prophet."

"Syman is a victim of a false charge. Unfair and misplaced justice."

"Let me explain." Syman said, tossing Cordesseye his knife. "It all started on my brother's first day at the academy…"

"… And that's why I'm here."

"I see." Cordesseye said, thinking. "I think I can help. I know an old hangar here on Venus. A few old ships may still exist there. Perhaps you could use of those to flee this place, but without a ghost, I doubt you'll get far."

"I will be going with him. He will get far." Prophet said.

"You're abandoning your entire reputation for this convict?!" Krea shouted. "You could be the next Warlock Vangaurd!"

"My friendship with Syman is more important than any title. I watched too many friends die as they were consumed by the Darkness. Never again will I sacrifice my friend to better myself. Would you not do the same for your friend?" Prophet said, motioning towards Cordesseye.

"I would, but it's just…"

Suddenly, a ship soared over them. It had the insignia of the Vanguard. "Looks like Zavala got tired of waiting for someone else to do his job. You better move fast. We'll keep them off your tail." Cordesseye said. "Here's the coordinates to that hangar." He traded the coordinates over to Prophet's ghost.

"Thank you." Syman said, in unison with Prophet.

"I do hope we meet again, comrades." Prophet said, waving goodbye to Cordesseye and Krea. The duos then split apart, two of them heading towards the Vanguard and the other running from him.

As the ship set down within the thick jungles of Venus, Cordesseye and Krea dismounted their sparrows. The ship hovered over between the trees before a cloaked figure materialized before them. The ship then tore off from the jungle, soaring out of view.

"Hello, Guardians." The cloaked man said.

"Cayde?" Cordesseye asked, rather surprised.

"Bingo!" The Hunter Vanguard laughed for a moment before he approached the duo of Guardians. "You happen to have seen this man?" He asked, sharing a more detailed document on Syman Wolcott with the both of them.

"Haven't seen the bastard himself, but we found his ship. Looked like he was piloting it manually."

"He's got some skill then. I didn't believe Zavala when he told me the kid flew away without a ghost, but hey, I guess he was right." Cayde-6 loaded his rifle and slung it over his shoulder. "Well, good hunting Guardians."

"Excuse me, Cayde, sir." Krea asked, grabbing Cayde by the shoulder.

"Yes, Guardian?"

"Why'd you come out here yourself? Why not leave the bounty to another Guardian?"

"Well, Zavala's riled up about letting this guy escape but the Speaker wouldn't let him leave the Tower. That meant it was either Ikora Rey or I who would take the shot at hunting this kid down and I wasn't about to pass up a chance to get back in the game."

"Oh, I see. Well, his ship's that way." Krea said, pointing opposite of where it actually was.

"Right, thanks for the help." Cayde-6 said before disappearing into the brush. Cordesseye and Krea mounted their sparrows.

"I'm surprised you decided to help that kid out in the end. What changed your mind?"

"If it was me in his position, I'd want someone to lie to the Vanguard for me too." Krea said as she accelerated her sparrow. Cordesseye sped up to meet her pace.

"Well, what now?" He asked.

"I say we find those two and give 'em a hand."

Cordesseye nodded and accelerated his sparrow to its maximum speed level, heading towards the old hangar.

The Fallen Vandal fell with a knife protruding from his forehead. "Nice throw." Prophet said as he moved ahead.

Syman nodded. "Thanks."

The two came to the final hangar bay in the complex, hoping there would be a ship. As the door slid open, they were greeted by bolts of arc light slamming into the walls beside them.

Syman slid to cover near a crate, firing arc light from a Fallen Shock Rifle. He covered Prophet as the Warlock moved up. "There's too many!" Syman shouted over the gunfire.

"There's also your ticket off of this planet!" Prophet yelled back, pointing to an old Golden Age ship in the corner of the hangar. "Keep your head down!"

Prophet stood up as bolts of arc light slammed into his torso. He hardly reacted to the pain as he summoned all of his focus. The Exo jumped up and thrust his hand outward, sending a ball of purple energy at the Fallen.

The impact between the ball and the ground killed most of the Fallen and Prophet picked off those who were left. As he approached the ship, he stumbled across a dead body that was anything but Fallen.

"Looks like it was a Guardian."

"'_Was_' is the keyword here." Syman said, inspecting the mutilated corpse. There was a scout rifle beside the body. Syman lifted it up and slung it over his shoulder.

Suddenly there was a rattling at the door. "Could that be the Vanguard?" Wolcott asked.

"Let's hope not." Prophet said as he used his ghost to reactivate the ship. "It can be piloted manually. Hop in and take off!"

Syman opened the hatch and slid inside the ship. Within seconds he tore from the hangar. Just then the door opened, revealing Cordesseye and Krea. "Prophet, we saw the Vanguard's ship nearby. I think he knows-"

Suddenly a ship zoomed past the hangar, pursuing Syman. The speedy vessel bore the mark of the Vanguard. "Dammit, that old piece of junk will never outrun a Vanguard ship. We've got to help." Krea exclaimed.

"And what, get ourselves in the same blacklist as Syman? No. We follow. Syman's a strong pilot, he'll make it to another planet whether he has to crash or land." Prophet said, summoning his ship. "I will be tracking Syman via the bounty the Vanguard put out on him. If we get split up, meet me at those coordinates." Suddenly Prophet disappeared as his ship soared over the hangar, following the same path as the Vanguard's.

"He didn't seem like the sort to take charge." Cordesseye said in retrospect. "Well, let's go."

The three Guardians sped from Venus's atmosphere, heading for wherever Syman landed.

200+ YEARS EARLIER

"I'm pinned!" A soldier shouted. The Fallen would not let up, their bullets sailing directly at the small squadron of soldiers.

"Cover me, I'm going for that sniper!" One of the soldiers yelled.

"Aegis-6, no, get down!" Shouted one of the other soldiers, but Aegis-6 continued to run. As he neared a rock directly beneath the sniper, a blue bolt of arc light slammed into his head.

The left side of his head erupted into metal and glass as the projectile tore through the helmet and drilled its way into his head. In a cloud of sparks Aegis-6 fell to the soft orange dirt of Mars's surface.

"Dammit!" Shouted Aegis-9 from his location in cover. "Someone throw a grenade, we need to get Aegis-11 out of there!"

"Roger that!" Shouted another soldier. He threw a flash grenade at the nearest huddle of Fallen, blinding them for a short amount of time.

"11, get over here!" Screamed Aegis-9.

"The sniper!" Shouted another Aegis soldier. The gunshot went off and the bullet tore through Aegis-11's torso, sending him to the ground in a mess of scorched metal and sparks.

"No! Quickly, someone cover me, we can save him!" Aegis-9 yelled. As he tried to move, a hand grabbed his arm.

"9, you'll never make it! We need to regroup with the others!"

"5, I'm not leaving him behind!" He screamed back. The Fallen had recovered from the flash and began shooting again. Aegis-9 took a long look at the battlefield. Only Aegis-9 and Aegis-5 remained alive.

"9, we have to go!"

"I hate you when you're right!" Aegis-9 said as he grabbed 5 by the arm and began to run. The Fallen gave chase, forcing the two to take cover behind a rock.

"How's your ammo?"

"On my last, you?"

"I'm out of all other ammo, but I've got a trick up my sleeve…" Suddenly a rocket launcher materialized in Aegis-5's hands. "Give me some cover while I line up a shot."

Just as they were about to jump from cover, a voice crackled to life in their head. "Aegis-9, do you read?'

"Augur, sir is that you?"

"You're alive. We just lost vitals for Aegis-6 and Aegis-11. What the hell happened? This was supposed to be a recon!"

"The Fallen were here, sir."

"They're becoming more and more of a problem every passing day. Fall back if you can, regroup with Aegis-12's squad."

"Yes sir."

"Augur out."

As the transmission ended, the two men decided then and there they would not be able to escape. They had to die fighting or hope for a miracle. "On your go, 5."

"Go!" Aegis-5 yelled as he jumped from cover. Aegis-9 walked forward, firing the whole time, as Aegis-5 got a direct line on the group of Fallen. Just as he was about to fire, he was distracted by a bright purple light.

"What is that…?" Aegis-9 said, awestruck by the floating purple ball. Suddenly a shock rifle slammed into his chest. He hardly felt pain, mostly because he wasn't designed to feel pain.

"Fire, dammit!" He screamed at 5, who was standing there motionlessly. 9 was forced to slide into cover.

Finally Aegis-5 moved. He turned towards Aegis-9. Without uttering a word, he shot the rocket. Out of pure instinct, 9 slammed his fist into the ground and deflected the rocket with a large purple bubble shield.

"What the hell?" Aegis-9 said. He tried to reason with 5, but it was no use. As he loaded another rocket, Aegis-9 was forced to raise his rifle. "Sorry, old friend." He pulled the trigger and Aegis-5 fell to the ground, his head rolling down the sandy cliff side.

Aegis-9 mounted his sparrow and zoomed away, heading for Aegis-12's location. As he slowed down atop the hillside, he looked onto their camp. It was ravaged and destroyed. The corpses of his allies, the rest of Aegis team, lie dead in the dirt. Aegis-12 sat in the middle of the camp, holding his pistol.

Aegis-12 was the biggest and burliest of the team. The strongest and by far most dangerous. Fearing he had been taken control of by the Fallen as well, Aegis-9 tried to contact Augur, with no luck. The signal was being jammed.

9 then slid down the hillside and stopped behind Aegis-12. Without speaking, the Exo jumped up and punched 9 across the face. When 9 stood up, he could not see from his left eye.

Without any ammunition, he'd never beat 12, and so 9 made a judgment call. He turned his ship to autopilot and navigated it directly at himself.

Suddenly there was a rumbling. Aegis-9 saw his ship sail over them and do a direct nosedive right at them. "Sorry mate, but I've gotta do this!" He kicked 12's kneecap, breaking the leg. Aegis-12 fell, showing no sign that he was even aware he had been injured.

Aegis-9 dove on top of Aegis-12 as the ship slammed down on the two of them. There was a fiery explosion that disappeared quickly. When the sand settled, all that was left was Aegis-9 standing in his purple bubble shield. Aegis-12 sat right outside the shield, torn to bits of metal and wires.

The shield wall fell, revealing a very weak Aegis-9. "Augur, if you can hear me, mission failed. Aegis team has been wiped out. I repeat… mission failed." Aegis-9 fell onto his side in the sand as the remains of his camp, ships and friends burned around him.

PRESENT DAY

Syman noticed the Vanguard behind him. "Dammit, that's Cayde's interceptor. I'll never outrun him…" As if someone had read his mind, another ship slammed into the Vanguard's. As they struggled for power in the middle of space, Syman accelerated, heading for Mars.

He entered the atmosphere with the two ships right behind him. Just as the Vanguard's cannons heated up, the other ship rammed him into a cliff, where his ship did multiple rolls before being buried in sand.

"Oh shit… if he's dead, they'll really have a reason to throw me away." Syman shook his head of the thought and focused on the task at hand. "Who's this guy?"

The mysterious ship followed right behind Syman. Seeing as to how it had helped him, Wolcott didn't feel threatened. However in a flash of light the ship fired its cannons. Syman's ship couldn't withstand the attack and began to dive towards Mars's surface.

The ship was headed directly for a cliff face. Syman pressed the manual release button and jumped from the ship. He slammed into the top of cliff and just barely grabbed on.

His ship hit the cliff and exploded. The wreckage then took its place hundreds of meters below at the bottom of the cliff. Syman held on by a single hand, unable to climb up. His handhold began to crumble.

"All that work for nothing?" Said a voice. Suddenly his arm was grabbed and he was yanked atop the cliff. Before him stood a Titan wearing oddly familiar armor. Behind him was the strange ship that had shot Syman down.

"Who are you?" Syman shouted, drawing his rifle.

"I assumed the voice would give it away. Perhaps I can make you remember with a bit of 'show and tell'." The man removed his helmet and let it fall into the sand. The face beneath was that of the instructor who had shot Maren.

"You son of a bitch!" Syman raised his rifle again, prepared to shoot.

"I saved you, kid. A shame you would try to kill me."

"That armor… It's-"

"Fallen armor, yes. Aren't you quite the detective?"

"And that ship…"

The instructor began to clap. "Congratulations." Suddenly there was a gunshot as Syman was hit by the impact of a bullet. He slid to the edge of the cliff.

"Why save me… just to kill me?"

"Simple, Syman Wolcott. I wanted the pleasure of ending your miserable life." The man aimed the shock pistol at Syman. "Do you remember Nijen Armen?"

"That foolish Hunter who got herself killed?"

"On your watch, Wolcott. That 'fool' was my sister, and she died because of you. And now, justice will be served."

"Or not!" Came a voice from behind the instructor. Suddenly he was hit in the head by a heavy metal object.

"What the…?" Syman said, struggling to stand up. "Who's there?"

Suddenly someone jumped up from behind a rock and took off into the dunes of Mars. "Hey, wait!" Syman began to follow, but the pain in his chest knocked him down.

Three ships soared over him then, one of them he recognized as Prophet's. "Oh thank God." He said, standing up. The instructor was knocked out cold with the severed head of a Vex Goblin next to him. Syman couldn't help but laugh.

"Something funny?" Came another familiar voice from behind Syman. "Hands up, kid."

"Cayde! You're alive! Let me explain!"

"Hands up!" He said. Cayde-6 was upset and prepared to shoot.

"No, it's not the kid." The instructor said, standing up and brushing himself off. "Take me. I'm the guilty one."

"You framed Syman?" Cayde-6 said, confusedly.

"Yes, indeed. Now arrest me and let's get off this rock."

"Wolcott, you'll meet me at the Tower to clear your name, or you'll remain a traitor. Your choice. As for you, let's go." Cayde pushed the instructor. "What's up with the Fallen armor? Freak."

Syman sat down in the sand, exhausted from running from the Vanguard. "Thank God this all getting sorted out." He said as he fell down.

Unbeknownst to him, there was a curious eye watching from the dunes…


	2. Segment Two

**I truly appreciate the reviews for the previous segment, along with support from friends. I never expected to take this story this far, and I have you guys to thank. Each view this story gets only makes me want to write more. I've noticed a few mistakes, and I plan to do a spelling and grammar check for each segment before I consider this story complete. If you read all the way through the fanfic, I'd greatly appreciate a review! It really does motivate me to get better at what I do. Before I wrap up this intro, I'd like to give a big thanks to my good friend C.J. He's helped me stay on top of things more than anyone, and his plot ideas really make this story better. Anyhow, enough rambling. Enjoy!**

Dramatis personæ for Destiny: Capstan of Fate

Segment 2

Maren Wolcott – Guardian – Male Human Titan

Mijael Armen – Former Guardian – Male Human Titan

Syman Wolcott – Guardian – Male Human Hunter

Prophet – Guardian – Male Exo Warlock

Krea Tyren – Guardian – Female Awoken Titan

Cordesseye Varnyx – Guardian – Male Awoken Hunter

Aegis-9 – Pre-Collapse Soldier – Male Exo [Titan]

Augur-7 – Pre-Collapse Officer – Male Exo [Warlock]

Riley Smith – Guardian – Male Human Hunter

Endu – Guardian – Male Exo Titan

"Then it is agreed. Syman Wolcott is to be absolved of all charges against him. His title as a Guardian and ghost shall be returned to him." The Speaker said. Commander Zavala left the Speaker's side and approached Syman, who stood in the front row of the crowd with his brother.

The Commander held out his hand and in it was a ghost, fully functional. It spoke to Syman and Wolcott was able to verify that this indeed was the ghost he had prior to this whole misunderstanding.

"But… how?"

"Deepest apologies, Mister Wolcott. We were able to recreate your ghost. It is the least of what you deserve after all we put you through." Zavala stated before bowing and returning to the Speaker.

"I wish there was more we could give you, Guardian." The Speaker said. "However nothing can truly say how deeply sorry we are. New gear and a new ship will be waiting for you at the postmaster. Besides that, my young friend, I see no other way to compensate you."

"Tell me, what has become of the old man I shared a cell with? Marcus, I believe his name was." Syman asked as he stepped from the crowd.

"We shall discuss this later. As of now, before all these witnesses, you are reinstated as a Guardian. Welcome back." The Speaker nodded to Syman and walked away, the Vanguard heading their own way as well.

As the crowd dispersed, Maren patted Syman's shoulder. "Thanks. I'm glad I don't have some crazy bastard as a teacher anymore."

"And I'm glad that I'm not being hunted down anymore." Syman said, laughing. "I hear that you are also being compensated, Maren. They're making you a Guardian already?"

"Yeah! I can't believe it. I'm so excited. I'll be officially instated in less than a week. Dad would be proud."

"You didn't even know him, bud."

"He'd still be proud, I'm sure."

"He's already proud of you, kiddo." Syman said, wrapping an arm around his brother. "Now go find mom. I've got to meet with the Speaker."

"Well, don't screw up!" Maren said as he laughed and ran off. Syman grinned and made his way to the Speaker's location.

Syman ascended the stairs to the Speaker's quarters. "Ah, Syman, take a seat. Tell me, what is it you wish to know about Marcus Radcliffe?"

"I would like his freedom."

"Freedom…?" The Speaker said slowly, as though he couldn't believe what he just heard.

"Yes. I do not believe he is guilty."

"Syman, Marcus Radcliffe killed two Guardians. There's no proof against it."

"And there's no proof that supports it either." Syman argued. The Speaker took a deep breath and sighed.

"I suppose you are correct. Our justice system has become frail, which is why I am asking this favor of you." The Speaker's voice became quiet as his face came closer to Syman's. "Mijael Armen."

"The instructor?" Syman asked.

"Former instructor. We've just discovered that he is in charge of a Fallen house. Which, we are not sure as of yet, but this information makes him dangerous, especially if he tried to kill you."

"Perhaps he is after me and only me." Syman suggested.

"Even so, you are one of us, and he will tear us down to get to you, I am sure. This is why I am telling you this information. Mijael Armen must be stopped."

"Stopped? Isn't he in custody?"

"No. He escaped this morning."

"What? How?" Syman said loudly. His face grew red as he saw the confused faces looking at him. "How did he escape?"

"The cell is completely intact. It is as if he just vanished. This is why we are concerned. There is a dark will at work here, and I fear if we do not stop Mijael, we may not stop whatever evil follows him. Not only this, Syman, but one of our scouts in the frontier spotted something rather… odd. I believe he may have seen Mijael. This is why-"

"I believe I will need a fireteam. I have just the people in mind…"

"No. This information is too delicate for just anyone. We have two hand-picked Guardians to serve with you. They are prepared for a job like this."

"Great, where are they?"

"You will find one of them, a Titan named Endu, on Mars. The other can be found somewhere on the Moon. He is a Hunter, Riley Smith. He is the scout who has information on Mijael."

"Right, got it. I better get on that." Syman said as he stood. The Speaker nodded.

"Oh and Syman?"

"Yes?"

"Try not to fail. The fate of the Tower could very well depend on it."

Syman nodded and pulled the hood of his cloak over his head and headed to the postmaster to receive his new ship and gear.

"Welcome Guardian. Your vehicle can be found with the Shipwright in the Hangar. Your navigation system has been updated."

"Thank you." Syman said as he pulled out his ghost. "I'd like to equip that armor, now."

"On it." His ghost replied. The familiar voice filled Syman with nostalgia, as though he was meeting a long lost friend once more.

With his new armor on, Syman made his way to the hangar. The sky grew cloudy and dark as rain began to fall. "Better get inside." Syman's ghost said.

Wolcott hurried to the hangar, where he met Amanda Holiday, the Shipwright. "You must be Syman. The Speaker asked me to give this beauty to you." She stood up and pointed to a ship in the bay.

"Wow. She's a fast one?"

"Fastest I've ever seen." Amanda said with a hint of jealousy. Syman nodded and smiled as he retrieved his ghost.

"Well, we better get a move on. To orbit." The ghost acknowledged his request and activated the ship, heading to orbit with Syman inside.

A FEW HOURS EARLIER

Earth's moon was a desolate place when there was nothing to kill. The gray landscape offered nothing but endless caverns and shallow craters. Riley sighed as he stood up.

"Seems like this is another successful patrol." He muttered.

"Shall I take us to orbit?" His ghost asked. Before Riley could reply, however, there was a massive rumbling.

"What the…" Riley murmured as he looked to the sky to see a Fallen skiff soar past. As it attempted to fly out into the reaches of space, a massive bolt of blue light slammed into its rear, sending it in an uncontrollable dive towards the moon's surface.

After the skiff carved a path through the moon's soil, Riley mounted his sparrow. "Why so interested?" His ghost asked.

"It bore an orange sigil."

"You could've mistaken it for yellow, the Kings."

"No, it was orange. I'm sure of it."

"Well, only one way to find out…" The ghost said as they slowed to a stop on a hill overlooking the crash site. Riley dismounted his sparrow and crouched on the hill, examining the skiff.

"There. That banner is orange. I've never seen it before." Suddenly a hatch on the skiff flew from its hinges. A Baron crawled out from inside. Around his neck was an orange cloak. With a mighty roar he shook the debris off of him.

A few Vandals and Dregs clambered from the skiff as well, some of them dragging their dead comrades onto the moon's surface. "We should report this to the Vanguard." The ghost suggested.

"This may be our only chance to take down this Baron. If we let him go, he could cause trouble in the long run." Riley said.

"I hope your right…"

Suddenly Riley leapt from the cliff and in midair his blade began to glow blue with arc light. He lunged at the Baron and slashed over and over again until the arc light wore off.

Riley tumbled back onto his bottom and watched the Baron fall to the ground, dead. Riley easily finished off the other, lesser Fallen. "Done and done." He said as he stood and dusted himself off.

"Are you sure about that? I'm getting a large reading… Something big is headed our way!" And suddenly the sky seemingly cracked as a Fallen ketch broke into the space above the moon.

"What the hell…?" Riley muttered. "Quick, where's it headed?" Riley asked to ghost.

"We're too far away for me to get a read on their navigation system."

"Then get us closer!" Riley said. The ghost disappeared and returned with Riley's ship. The ghost piloted the vessel as close as they could get without being detected by the ketch.

"Alright… Alright… Done!"

"Where's it headed?"

"Mars."

"You know what to do." Riley said as the ship was pushed to its maximum speed, heading for Mars. As the ship began to make the jump to Mars, Riley gave his ghost one final order. "Pass this information along to the Speaker. Tell him we may have discovered a new Fallen house."

PRESENT DAY

As the ship dipped low to the ground, Wolcott was dematerialized and reformed on Mars's surface. "She flies well."

"Indeed. The Vanguard was very generous to lend you that ship."

"What do you mean _lend_?" Syman asked his ghost confusedly.

"That ship is Cayde-6's interceptor, retrofitted for combat instead of pursuit. I am assuming he will want it back when you have successfully dealt with Mijael Armen."

Syman grunted. "Well damn, I was hoping I'd get to keep it." He shrugged and followed the waypoint that appeared on his visor. "We've got a job to do right now. The ship can wait until later."

"Agreed." His ghost replied.

As Syman approached the waypoint, there was a loud crack in the sky and intense rumbling. From the cave below came a Guardian in dirty white armor, running to inspect the noise. He looked up and saw Syman, who pointed to the massive ship in the sky.

A Fallen ketch had just broken into the atmosphere from an interplanetary jump. It careened over the mountains and dunes and disappeared behind them. Syman made eye contact with the Guardian below.

"Who are you?" The Guardian shouted.

"My name is Syman Wolcott, I'm looking for a Titan named Endu. Do you know him?"

The Guardian scrambled up the cliff side with surprising agility. "Know him? I am him." He stuck his hand out for a shake. "Endu. Glad to meet you."

Syman shook his hand. "And you." Syman released Endu's hand and cautiously looked around, ensuring no unwanted ears were nearby. "The Speaker has asked me to come find you. He said that you could help me."

"That all depends on what you need help with."

"A former instructor at the Tower has been charged with treason. He escaped his cell today. What makes it worse is that the cell was intact. As if he just… disappeared."

"Troubling…" Endu said, thinking. "So you need to find this guy and kill him?"

"Yeah."

"Right, count me in. Any enemy of the Tower is an enemy of mine." Endu patted Syman on the shoulder. "So, where is he?"

"That much, we are unsure of. The Speaker said there was a scout on the moon with information on his whereabouts, I suppose that is our first stop."

Suddenly there was another, smaller rumble. The sky cracked and from it came a Guardian ship. It soared over Endu and Syman and headed in the same direction the ketch did.

"Before we head to the moon, do you mind if we check out what all the commotion's about?" Endu asked.

"I was just about to suggest that." Syman summoned his sparrow and pushed it as fast it could go, climbing the dunes of Mars just as he used to with Prophet at his side.

As the dunes gave way to the sight of the massive Fallen ketch, Syman and Endu slowed their sparrows. "They're a lot bigger up close, I guess." Endu said.

"Yeah." Syman replied, a bit awestruck by the size of the vessel. "Look, there's that other Guardian."

"Should we try to catch up to him?" Endu suggested as his sparrow came to a complete stop on the edge of the cliff.

"He's heading down to the ketch. There's a lot of Fallen between him and the entrance. We should flank the Fallen currently outside the ketch, buy him time to move in. We can meet up with him inside."

"Right, good plan." Endu dismounted his sparrow and drew his auto-rifle, chambering a round. "By the way, did you notice the cloaks on these guys?"

"I've never seen Fallen wear orange." Syman muttered as he examined the cloaks from afar. Then he too dismounted his sparrow and loaded his new scout rifle. "Let's get down there and get a closer look."

Syman scrambled down the cliff and Endu followed. Clouds of dust billowed up into the sky as their boots hit the sand. "We ought to attack before the other guy does, so he's not spotted right away." Endu said as he took cover behind a crate.

"Good idea." Syman whispered back. He slowly slid his knife from its sheathe before he stabbed a Dreg in the chest with it. As the creature fell, Syman ripped the cloak from around its neck.

Ducking behind a crate, Wolcott looked at the symbol on the cloak. "Looks almost like…" Syman began.

"… The Traveler." Endu finished.

Suddenly there was a gunshot that snapped them from their thoughts. "Shit, we waited too long." Syman cursed as he began to fire.

"They're not going anywhere now!" Endu shouted over the sound of his auto-rifle firing at its maximum speed.

The Vandals and Dregs that occupied the area outside the ketch's loading bay were gunned down quickly. The other Guardian waved Syman and Endu over to his position behind some crates.

"We better hurry." Endu warned as he pointed to a group of Vandals leaving the ketch. Syman nodded as he ducked behind the crate.

"Who're you guys?" The Guardian asked. He was a Hunter.

"I'm Endu."

"Wolcott, Syman." Syman shook the Hunter's hand, as did Endu.

"I'm Riley Smith. I tracked these guys from the moon."

"Smith?" Syman said. Riley nodded. "I need your help."

"It can wait."

"No, it can't."

"It can wait." Riley said as he jumped over the crate and began to fire at the Vandals. He made a run for the loading bay.

"Dammit, let's go!" Syman shouted as he ran after Riley.

The loading bay door began to rise as the ketch prepared for takeoff. Endu put his foot on a crate and jumped, landing on the door. As he jumped, the crate shattered.

The ketch began to move forward as it prepared to make the jump to its next destination. Syman neared the cliff, knowing he would have to jump. Endu stuck out his hand. "Jump!" He encouraged.

Wolcott pushed off from the ground and his hand met Endu's. "Thank the Traveler, man! Come on!" As Endu began to pull Syman up, there was a loud gunshot. A solid bolt of arc light slammed into Syman's shoulder, severing the arm.

Syman screamed as his body realized the pain. His blood sprayed all over his visor, his last sight being the loading bay doors close as the ship made an interplanetary jump. The last thing he felt was his body slam into the ground far below the ship.

The Hunter opened his eyes. He felt extremely stiff, so stiff that he was unable to move. When he tried to move, pain coursed through his body.

On his visor was a mix of blood and sand, completely obscuring his vision. Somewhere on the sand above him, he heard a metallic noise. "Found you."

In an instant, Syman's vision went black. When his vision returned, he saw nothing but the same view as before – bloody dirt.

It was then, however, that he realized he could move. Wolcott wiped his visor, and to his surprise he was standing atop the sand. His arm was no longer missing, and his ghost hovered beside him. "Thanks." He said.

"Just doing my job." The ghost replied.

"Where'd that ketch go?"

"No clue. I did pick up an anomaly, however. Somewhere in the Reef a Guardian initiated a distress call via his ghost."

"Endu or Riley, you think?"

"We don't have any other leads." The ghost said as it disappeared.

"Right, well, let's head to that beacon." Syman muttered as his ship soared to his location.

The helmet's visor was shattered in multiple places. Blood trickled through the cracks. A cough came from somewhere in the darkness. "Hey… Hey, who's there?" Riley said as he spat blood onto his visor.

"It's Endu." The Titan coughed again, his noises echoing throughout the dark chamber.

Riley pulled his helmet off and his arms fell back to the floor. His body felt too weak to move. He blinked and when his eyes opened, he saw Endu crouched over him. "Come on, get up."

Riley was dragged to his feet by his fellow Guardian. His mind raced, attempting to recall the events that put him in this situation. "What happened…?"

"After the loading bay door closed, the ship made a jump. Some Vandals were on our tail and when we turned the corner…"

Riley's mind finished the rest of the memory as he recalled the pain of a massive fist slamming into his face. He remembered seeing his visor shatter, obscuring his vision.

"We ran into a Baron. I can't remember much after that." Endu said as he winced. Blood had dried on the side of his torso, staining his white armor a crimson red. "I can't see anything…"

"Our ghosts… Why haven't they activated our lights? Better question is… why haven't we seen them?" Riley asked.

"Shit." Endu said as he sat Riley down against a wall.

"What?"

"I remember someone else. They weren't Fallen, from what I could tell." Endu leaned against the wall. "He told the Baron to seize our ghosts, and then he walked away."

Riley sighed as he cursed under his breath. He led his head hit the wall and he looked up. There was a glowing red light on the ceiling that was too small to illuminate anything. "Hey, up there." He said as he used the wall to stand himself up.

"Could that be a door on the ceiling?" Endu said as he stood.

"Maybe." Riley said with a shrug as he put a hand higher up on the wall. There was a small metal strut protruding from the wall and he wrapped his hand around it and pulled, exerting what little energy he had. His left hand rose and found a hole in the wall.

"Riley? What're you doing?" Endu asked as he tried to follow Riley.

Riley's hands continued to climb up the wall until he reached the door. With his arms trembling, he reached out. Just before his hand was able to unlock the door, his ghost appeared in front of him.

"I wouldn't do that."

Smith shrieked and fell from the wall. He slammed into the floor.

"Sorry." His ghost said as it zoomed down to him. "Outside that door is nothing but space. You'd die without your helmet."

"What do you mean?" Endu asked as he neared Riley and his ghost.

"Well from what I can tell, the ship must've exploded just as it left jump-speed. I only remember the encounter with the Baron and waking up a bit ago."

"Well what do we do?" Riley asked as he struggled to stand.

"I sent out a distress beacon as soon as I could establish a strong connection to the ship's transmitter. Hopefully someone will respond, assuming the beacon works."

"So we wait." Endu said as he sat down against the wall.

"It would seem that way."

The stars seemingly changed form as Syman left jump-speed. "I'm scanning for lifeforms." His ghost said as he slowed to a stop amidst the wreckage of the Reef. The fresh corpses of many Fallen floated around the dead space, all of them bearing orange cloaks.

"Did the…" Syman began.

"Ketch explode? Yes. Looks like a failure in the engine."

"So Riley, Endu, are they…"

"Dead? Perhaps not, I've just picked up a read on some nearby lifeforms."

"Where?"

"There." The ghost said as it set a navigation waypoint. Syman increased his speed, heading for the chunk of wreckage where he believed his friends were located.

Syman materialized inside what used to be a hangar bay. Where the bay door once was, there was now a gaping hole revealing nothing but dead space.

Wolcott continued on until he reached the old elevator shaft. "Straight down and we ought to reach them." His ghost said. Syman peered down the shaft. If there was a bottom, he couldn't see it.

"Here goes nothing." Syman said as he leapt, going feet first down the shaft. His body then shifted and he was now falling horizontally, back to the ground.

"Almost... Almost… Now!" His ghost shouted. Syman used his boost and went flying through an open doorway. He flopped and rolled, crashing into several barrels and crushing a crate or two.

With a moan he stood and looked around. Before him were three Guardians and none of them were recognizable as Endu or Riley.

"You didn't say there were three." Syman said to his ghost. The ghost remained silent, an abnormal thing for his ghost to do. "So… who are you guys?"

One of the Guardians, a bit shorter than the rest, approached Syman. He pressed a button on the side of his helmet and the visor became clear. "Maren!" Syman exclaimed in both joy and anger. "What the hell are you doing out here?"

"Syman! These two agreed to show me the ropes, and we picked up a distress beacon coming from this area, so we came. Why are you here?"

Syman was silent, hesitant to share his mission's details with his younger brother. Another Guardian approached him, a female in figure. "Syman Wolcott?"

Wolcott nodded. "Yeah, that's me."

"We've met. Krea Tyren. This is my partner, Cordesseye Varnyx."

"I remember. From Venus, right?"

Krea nodded as Cordesseye approached Syman. "Why are you here?" He asked.

"I'm looking for… an old friend of mine." Wolcott lied.

"Prophet?" Krea suggested.

"No, his name's Riley."

Krea stumbled back a bit, as if she was completely shell-shocked. Maren and Cordesseye helped stabilize her. "Riley? Riley Smith?" She asked. "No… He's dead. He… He can't be alive… He can't be here…"

"You know him?" Syman asked. Cordesseye gave him a look that seemed to say _'shut up'_.

Krea then realized how she was acting and stood up straight. "Uh, yeah. He was a friend of mine a while ago. Do you know where he is?"

"I assumed he was here." Syman said. Suddenly his ghost began to speak, but it was nowhere to be seen. The transmission was clouded by what seemed to be a signal jammer, but Syman could just barely make it out.

"Long dead… Prime… Jamming signal…Cargo hold…" The transmission then ended. Krea gave Syman a confused look.

"You alright?"

"We have to get to the cargo hold, now." Syman then took off and Maren obediently followed. Cordesseye and Krea were a bit reluctant, but gave chase anyhow.

"We cannot lose that cargo. Years of resources and studying have gone into that thing and we cannot lose it now." Mijael was furious as he shouted at the small man next to him.

"I understand sir. I'll dispatch whatever Vandals we have left to find it." The midget walked away from Mijael, who stood in the bridge of the broken Ketch, gazing at the thousands of other dead ships in the Reef.

"Oh and Srenn?" Mijael said as he turned around. The short man stopped in the doorway. "Find me that damn Archon."

Srenn nodded and let the doors close behind him. Mijael turned back to the void. Suddenly a ship entered the Reef. He immediately recognized it as the ship he had chased to Mars. "Wolcott." He said with a scowl on his face. He grabbed the helmet that sat on the powered-off control board next to him and put it on.

Mijael Armen was burning with hatred. "Syman Wolcott, I shall force sorrow upon you, as you did to me." He muttered as he watched Syman materialize in the old hangar.

Armen initiated a transmission with Srenn. "Yes sir?" Srenn said.

"There is a Guardian by the name of Maren Wolcott here. I believe he will be somewhere around the old hangar. Find him and bring him to me, and do not kill anyone."

"Yes sir." Srenn said. Mijael ended the transmission and gave a final gaze at Wolcott.

"You will pay."

Syman burst through the door to the cargo hold. Inside was a Fallen skiff, many Vandals and a large sphere of metal. It's core glowed with purple light. "Is that…?"

The cargo hold's lights flickered on and the PA system was activated. "Feast your eyes upon the ancient and the all-powerful Sepiks Prime!"

The voice sounded surprisingly human, which added to Syman's confusion. "But Sepiks Prime was killed years ago!" Krea shouted.

"And yet here he is. No matter what happened in the past, we must deal with the present. I'll distract his gaze, you fire upon him. Syman, you and your brother need to keep the Vandals off us." Cordesseye ordered.

Syman, Maren and Krea nodded as they began their attack.

"Isn't that cute?" The PA system blared. "You're fighting back! You little revolutionaries you… No seriously, just stop. I don't want to kill you. I only need one of you. And yes, you guessed it! Maren Wolcott, would you please step forward to retrieve your prize? Maren Wolcott, come forward and save your companions from certain death! Without your ghosts, you Guardians are nothing!"

"Our ghosts…?" Krea asked as she realized her ghost was not with her any longer.

"Sepiks Prime is jamming their signals. The Darkness is so powerful here that even our ghosts cannot function. If we die, we are dead for good." Syman said.

"Then I know what I need to do." Maren said as he threw his auto-rifle over his low cover.

"Ah, what a hero." The man on the PA system said. A Vandal shot Maren with a sort of paralytic projectile and he fell.

"Maren!" Syman yelled.

"No, stay down!" Cordesseye ordered as he held Wolcott's arm. The Vandals dragged Maren aboard the skiff as another skiff landed. Sepiks Prime floated aboard and the doors closed on both skiffs.

"No! Maren! Get off me, you bastard!" Syman shoved Cordesseye as he tried to chase after the skiff. It took off into the Reef, heading for another chunk of the Ketch.

The Guardians felt the Darkness lift from the area and their ghosts jumped back to life. Syman walked up to Cordesseye and let loose a punch to his cheek. "You son of a bitch, that's my brother!" Syman threw another punch.

Cordesseye grabbed Syman's arm mid-punch. "And he's not dead yet, and neither are you. If he wouldn't have done that, we'd all be dead anyway. At least now we have a chance to save him.

Wolcott stumbled back. "You're right."

The PA system blared to life again. "What a smart fellow! Maybe we ought to kill that kid a bit quicker now that you've got us all figured out!"

Cordesseye summoned his ghost. "Trace that signal."

"On it." The ghost replied. Within seconds a navigation waypoint popped up on a massive chunk of the ship, exactly where the skiffs went.

"Well what are we waiting for?" Krea said.

Syman's ghost began to speak. "That signal trace was able to supply us some information about the ketch and this new House. They're labeled as the House of Deceit. They're led by a Kell named… Mijael Armen."

"How didn't the Speaker know about this?" Syman exclaimed.

"He did, he just didn't share it with anyone. The man you're hunting leads these Fallen."

"Then we need Riley and Endu." Syman said.

"If Riley's alive, I'm going after him." Krea said.

"As am I. He was a friend to me as well, and we need all the help we can get." Cordesseye said.

"Then it's settled. Let's do this."

"Hear that?" There were footsteps outside the door. Endu looked up, curious.

"Yeah." Riley said as he rose also.

"Whatever's out there, it's not-" Endu's ghost was cut off as an explosion went off and the door came caving in, along with some of the wall.

Immediately, all of the oxygen in the chamber was stolen from Riley. Endu lifted the door off of him as two Vandal's dropped in the room. They fired almost immediately.

Endu launched the door at the midsection of one of the Vandals and it cut him in to, pinning his torso and everything above it against the wall as his legs fell over.

The other Vandal fired and hit Endu in the shoulder. The brute shrugged it off and charged the Fallen, punching the creature.

As his comrade fought the Fallen, Riley clawed at his throat, slumping against the wall. His face felt full of pressure and his lungs ached. Finally, there was a spray of blood as Endu kicked the Fallen in the head.

"No!" Endu yelled as he realized what was happening to Riley. Endu tore his helmet off and slipped it on Riley. The seal activated and air began to flow. Riley's vision faded and he passed out.

When he sat up, Endu had a shock rifle and was standing over him. "Thank God!" he said. The Exo required no oxygen, for he didn't need to breathe. "You alright?" He asked.

Riley nodded and struggled to stand. After he regained his bearings, he hefted up one of the shock rifles. It felt foreign and odd, but it would suffice.

"Why didn't you give me your helmet earlier?" Riley asked as he sucked in oxygen heavily.

"My bad. I didn't think of that."

"No problem. Let's just get the hell out of here." Riley summoned his ghost. "Can you get my ship?"

"Certainly, but I'm picking up life forms. Three of them, closing in. Moving fast." Suddenly there were multiple thuds as if heavy objects had been dropped onto the outside of the chamber.

Riley looked up and saw another Guardian looking back at him. It was the man from Mars, Syman. "Thank God! You made it. Can you help us out of here?"

"It's true." Came another voice from somewhere above. It was female and extremely familiar. When Riley heard it, he felt a wave of calm and happiness wash over him. A graphic image of much blood and a lot of screaming flashed in his mind. The happiness turned to grief and sorrow.

"Krea?!" He shouted. Riley dropped the rifle and clambered up the wall, his energy suddenly renewed. As he struggled out from the doorway, he came face to face with Krea Tyren. "Krea…"

"Welcome back, Riley." Said a familiar male voice from behind Riley. It was Cordesseye Varnyx, a very old friend of his.

"It's been so long. I… I thought you were…" Riley began.

"Dead. I saw you die…" Krea said as she began to stumble.

Syman lifted Endu from the chamber and they joined the circle. Syman came between Krea and Riley. "You've got history, but right now, we have a mission."

"No, _you_ have a mission." Krea said as she shoved Syman.

"I'm going after Mijael Armen. Not only is he a traitor who can mysteriously disappear from a prison cell, but he's a Kell. I was asked by the Speaker to ensure he dies. I needed Endu and Riley for that."

"You've got my gun." Endu said as he patted Syman's shoulder.

"If the Speaker calls upon me, I can't refuse." Riley said as he nodded to Syman.

"If Riley's in, so am I. I won't lose you again." Krea stated with a very commanding tone.

"I'm with you." Cordesseye chimed in.

"Right. This may be our only chance to catch this bastard. We can't allow him to disappear again. We're outmanned and outgunned. Our equipment is torn to shit, but we have to work with what we've got."

"Let's do it, then." Endu said with enthusiasm.

"My words exactly, friend." Syman said as he lifted up his rifle. "Time to show these bastards who they're messing with."

The ships soared towards the massive chunk of ketch where Mijael was located. "Closing in. Remember the plan?" Wolcott asked. Everyone acknowledged that they remembered.

"Now!" Riley yelled as he dove for the hangar. Endu followed. Cordesseye distracted the enemy fighters with Krea.

"Go for it, Syman! Now!" Cordesseye yelled.

Syman was dropped from the cockpit and propelled himself at the bridge. He saw a silhouette in the glass and knew it was Armen. He shattered the glass and crashed into Mijael.

The former instructor jumped up and fired twice. Syman rolled and punched him in the stomach, then moving to disarm him.

Mijael hit him with the pistol and kicked Syman. Wolcott threw his knife, hitting the Kell in the leg. Blood spurted from the wound, but Mijael continued to fight.

Wolcott threw his other knife, hitting Mijael's arm. The instructor winced. Syman used this opportunity to punch him in the face. There was a sound like glass cracking.

The former instructor grabbed Syman and threw him. Wolcott slammed into a deactivated control panel. Mijael grabbed Syman by the throat and reached for his helmet.

Syman struggled to stop him but the instructor overpowered Wolcott. Suddenly the door to the bridge broke open and there was a loud gunshot. Armen put a hand to his throat and removed it. It was stained with blood.

Wolcott grabbed him by his neck and launched him out the window. "Riley, now!" Syman said.

"Roger that." Riley responded via his communication device. "Power's on." Suddenly the lights turned on. Wherever there was a breach in the ship's hull, a metal gate slammed down and the oxygen was restored all over the ship.

Mijael Armen was trapped in the dead space of the Reef with a bullet wound to his neck. Syman sighed, proud of his victory. Endu patted his shoulder. "Nice plan. Worked well."

"Cordesseye, did you find Maren?" Syman asked of the communicator.

"They're getting away!" Was the only response that came back through. Syman heard gunfire and then the transmission ended.

"Riley, get to the second hangar, it's directly above you!" Syman shouted into his communicator. "And fucking hurry!"

The skiff soared from the hangar as Cordesseye fired his last shot. "Disregard that. They got away."

"Follow them!" Syman screamed via his communicator.

"They're too far gone… I'm sorry, Syman. Without a Kell, these Fallen are nothing. They'll make a mistake, eventually."

"You better hope they do." Syman said with malice, just before he ended the transmission.

As the fireteam of five gathered in the bridge of the Ketch, they planned their next move. Suddenly there was a crackle in Syman's communication device. "Wolcott?" Said the Speaker.

"Mijael Armen is dead. They took my brother!" Syman responed.

"I am sorry for this, it was not meant to happen, but your brother knew the risks when he became a Guardian. I am summoning you and you companions back to the Tower."

"No! I'm going after Maren!" Syman shouted.

"Failure to comply will result in exile and incrimination of you and those who support your actions. Do not think of yourself, but of your friends. Return to the Tower or be marked a criminal… again." The Speaker ended the transmission and Syman slammed his helmet down on the control board.

"Fuck! We're going back." With that, Syman summoned his ship and was taken to orbit. His fireteam followed.

They made it back to the Tower in time. Commander Zavala directed Syman to the Speaker. "Do not keep him waiting, Wolcott."

Syman nodded and pushed past Zavala. "Well, what now?"

"You've killed the Kell of the House of Deceit. Your mission is complete."

"They have Maren!"

"If you killed the Kell, they would now respect you as their new leader. Someone else must be taking authority."

"Let me go after him!"

"No, your emotions will cloud you if you take on this task. You are to return to your normal patrols for now, Syman."

"No, I'm going after Maren!"

"You know the price of insubordination, Wolcott. Zavala, we're done here." Zavala nodded and grabbed Syman by the shoulders, tossing him in a puddle outside the Speaker's quarters.

Syman looked up and saw a figure above him with an outstretched hand. As Wolcott grabbed it and rose, he made out the old and worn face of Prophet. "Prophet!" Syman exclaimed with joy.

"I was beginning to assume you had failed your mission, Syman."

"I did. They have my brother."

"I heard that, and I have a solution."

"Even if we do try to go after them, we'll die. The two of us can't do anything, and we can't ask other Guardians to sacrifice themselves for this."

"That's why we won't be calling upon any Guardians. Meet me at the coordinates on Mars. The answer to our problem will be there, my friend."

With that, Prophet summoned his ship and soared away. Syman shrugged as he summoned his ship. "What's the worst that could happen?"

Her hand moved across his bare chest, their soft, intimate breathing the only sound in the dark bedchamber. His lips were pressed against hers, his hand grazing her hips.

With a soft moan and a hand on his cheek, Krea broke the kiss and put her forehead against his. "I missed you. All this time… Where were you?"

Riley sighed, interlocking fingers with Krea. "I thought you had died. I wanted revenge. It was all I thought about."

"You never went back to the Tower?"

"No. I couldn't stop looking. When I saw the ketch, I felt like… like maybe it would lead me to you." Riley then pulled his head away and made eye contact with Krea. "And it did." He murmured gently as tears formed in his eyes.

"Oh, Riley!" Krea exclaimed as tears rolled from her eyes. Their lips met and she wrapped her arms around him. "I love you." She whispered as she pulled away from his lips.

"I love you too."

200+ YEARS EARLIER

"You've been selected to lead this team. They're being given the best training any human soldier has ever received. You will be their supervisor, their overseer, and their friend. You are one like them, but unlike them at the same time. You are Exo, you are a war machine, but you are not like these Exos. You are their voice of reason, their guide. You are Augur-7, the prophet of Aegis team."

"Yes sir."

"Very good. Now, Augur-7, meet Aegis team." The doors slid open to reveal fully armored Exos who all looked identical, besides the weapons they held. On the side of their helmets was a number, and each was different.

A member of Aegis team, Aegis-9 as his helmet read, approached Augur. "Hello sir. We welcome your leadership of Aegis team." The Exo stuck his hand out for a handshake. Augur shook his hand.

"Thank you, soldier."

PRESENT DAY

A sweet voice awoke him from his slumber. "Mijael." She would giggle. "Mijael, wake up." Another giggle. "Mijael!" Suddenly there was a scream. "Mijael, wake up! Help me!" She screamed more. "Help! Save me!" A gunshot. A cough. "Why didn't you save me? Why didn't you wake up…?"

Mijael sat up with a start, his hand reaching for his empty holster. He looked around frantically, unsure of his location. Thinking back, he tried to piece it all together. Wolcott had assaulted his ketch. There was a fight and then…

He put a hand to his neck and felt the soggy bandages that covered the bullet wound. "How…?" He muttered. Mijael remembered the gunshot and the impact. He fell out of the bridge and began to drift around in space, when he lost consciousness.

"That's what I said." A voice said from somewhere in the darkness.

"Who's there?"

A man emerged from the darkness, into the low light that the lamp on the table gave off. The man's hands were raised as he approached Mijael. "I found you drifting around."

"Who are you? Where am I?"

"I'm a scavenger, and you're on my ship."

"Where are we?"

"I figured you were in some sort of trouble, so I flew us from the Reef. We're in Mars's orbit right now. But enough about me… Who are you?"

Mijael sat up. "My name's Mijael Armen. I… I don't really know who I am anymore."

"What do you mean?"

"All these years I've been trying to help her, but it's too late for that. I felt like hurting him would bring her back. But… I was wrong."

"Are you alright in the head, friend?"

"I need you to take me to the Reef, now."

"Okay, whatever you say, man." The scavenger climbed into the pilot's seat of the small junk ship.

Before he could make the jump to the Reef, the stars seemed to split before them as a Fallen skiff entered the atmosphere and headed to Mars's surface. "Wait, follow that skiff!" Mijael shouted as he jumped into the copilot seat.

"Are you crazy? I'm not doing that! We're going to the Reef." The scavenger said as he went to initiate the jump. Mijael punched him in the face and slammed his head down on the control board.

"Yes, I am crazy." Armen said as he tossed the man's body into the rear of the ship. Mijael slid into the pilot's seat and began to track the skiff.

The pilot of the skiff must've taken notice, because the vehicle began to dodge all over in an attempt to lose the junk ship.

The junk ship wasn't equipped for battle, but it had a mining laser that, if used correctly, could successfully demobilize the skiff.

Mijael aimed the laser towards the skiff and charged the weapon. Just as it fired, the skiff moved to the left, causing the laser to carve a path directly through a cliff side, causing the cliff to collapse on the skiff.

The junk ship slowed to a stop on the cliff where Armen could watch the dust settle on top of the skiff. The sand rolled down the side of the skiff that was now on its back.

A door was revealed, and it slid open. Two vandals crawled out, along with a short man and a young Guardian. The short man made conversation with the Guardian, who refused to reply.

Mijael called out to them. "Srenn, is that you?"

The short man looked up to Mijael. "Mijael? We assumed you were dead, sir!" The midget jumped off of the skiff, motioning for the Guardian to do the same.

As Mijael slid down the side of the cliff and met Srenn on level ground, his hand snagged a rock that was poking from the side of the cliff. "The Guardian, as you request sir."

"Thank you." Mijael said just before he slammed the rock against Srenn's head. The rock shattered into dust as Srenn fell to the ground. Mijael grabbed a rifle from the Vandal nearest to him, shot it and shot the other.

The Guardian back up, wide-eyed. "Hold."

"Why should I?"

"Because I have a gun and you don't. Now come here so I can get those bindings off."

As Maren stuck the cuffs out to Mijael, the Kell popped them off. "Did Srenn mention where they had taken Sepiks Prime?"

"The midget said that they took 'the servitor' to 'the plateau', if that helps." Maren rubbed his sore wrists. "Can I have a gun?"

Mijael pointed to the dead Vandal's rifle on the ground. "You're going to help me destroy that servitor and then I'll take you to your brother. Get that gun and get your sparrow out."

Wolcott summoned his sparrow and Mijael took control of it. "Climb on the back." Maren reluctantly slid on the rear of the speeder. "Hold on." Mijael pushed the sparrow as fast as it would go, drifting through the great canyons of Mars.

Riley rolled over, nightmares plaguing his sleep. He sat up with a start, cold sweat on his forehead. After a moment of silence, Krea moaned as she sat up and leaned against him.

"What is it?" She whispered.

"Nothing."

"Talk to me."

"I saw you die again." Riley said bluntly as he turned towards Krea's face, blackened by the dark of the night. He slid his hand down her arm. She hushed him and put her lips against his.

As she pushed him onto his back, a notification appeared on Riley's communicator. He groaned and pulled away from Krea as he evaluated the message on his communicator.

"It's from the Speaker." He said with surprise. "Looks like a bounty update." Riley pressed the play button.

"Attention, all Guardians. Two Guardians, known as Syman Wolcott and 'Prophet', have disobeyed direct orders from myself and have been exiled from the safety of the Tower. They are to be hunted and killed, immediately." The message ended abruptly.

In the low light that the communicator gave off, Riley made eye contact with Krea. They knew what had to be done, they just hoped they wouldn't be the only ones to finally take action.


	3. Segment Three

**A big thank you to those who read segment 2. I've decided to share with you what I've got of segment 3 so far, which is a little less than what I would describe as "halfway". C.J. was a big help in some of the plot for segment 3 and his role as a plot-developer will only get larger as this final entry of the fanfiction progresses. Anyway, I hope you enjoy, and don't forget to leave a review!**

**(Caution: There is some sexual content in this segment, along with a bit more strong language and violence than is described in the rest of the fanfiction. Regardless of these adult themes, I hope you still enjoy, but please view at your own discretion.)**

Dramatis personæ for Destiny: Capstan of Fate

Segment 3

Maren Wolcott – Guardian – Male Human Titan

Mijael Armen – Former Guardian – Male Human Titan

Syman Wolcott – Guardian – Male Human Hunter

Prophet – Guardian – Male Exo Warlock

Krea Tyren – Guardian – Female Awoken Titan

Cordesseye Varnyx – Guardian – Male Awoken Hunter

Aegis-9 – Pre-Collapse Soldier – Male Exo [Titan]

Augur-7 – Pre-Collapse Officer – Male Exo [Warlock]

Riley Smith – Guardian – Male Human Hunter

Endu – Guardian – Male Exo Titan

Craugh – Former Guardian – Female Human Hunter

Craugh sighed as the piece of metal broke. "God dammit." She cursed as she slid to pieces of metal off the table and onto the floor, with many other pieces of broken metal.

Suddenly she heard the outer airlock door slide open. Her hand went for her hand cannon. The airlock filled with air and the inner door opened behind her. She spun around, raising the weapon.

Two figures entered the room as the steamy air dissipated. The first one was an Exo that she immediately recognized. She holstered her revolver. "Prophet?" She exclaimed as she approached him.

"I honestly didn't expect you to come."

"It has been nearly six years, Alyssa."

Craugh cringed at the name and hushed him. "I go by Craugh, now." Prophet nodded in understanding. "Who's this guy?" She asked as she approached the blonde human beside her old friend.

"This is Syman Wolcott, my partner." Prophet said as he introduced the blonde man.

"Replaced me already?" Craugh said with a laugh as she turned back to her table. "So what do you need, that you came all the way here to find me?"

Craugh began to work with the pieces of metal, scrapping them again as they broke.

"I was hoping you and those mercenaries you joined were available. Could I speak to the leader?"

Craugh spun around and giggled. "You're talking to her, baby." She laughed again and motioned for them to follow. "And we're a bit more than a band of mercenaries, now." She said as the door slid open, revealing the rest of an ancient bunker now filled with roughly half a hundred soldiers.

She grinned as she placed her hands on the railing of the catwalk that overlooked the bunker. "Prophet, Wolcott, meet the Legion of the Damned."

Craugh laughed as she noticed the wide-eyed face of Syman as he stood in awe. "How did you hide this from the Tower?" He asked.

"We don't hide. They just forget to look." Craugh grinned and beckoned for them to follow her down a flight of stairs, into the bunker's main chamber.

"Why the hell would they be exiled?" Riley asked as he sat on the side of the bed.

"We could ask the Speaker. Maybe persuade him to take the bounty off their heads?" Krea suggested as she pulled a shirt on over her bare chest.

"That might work. Call your friend, that Awoken Hunter."

"Cordesseye?" Krea asked.

"Yeah, him."

Krea then turned on her communicator and a surge of messages came through. They were all from Cordesseye, and one from Endu, the Titan she met in the Reef.

"Krea, answer me, dammit! You need to get out of the Tower, now!" Cordesseye's message ended. Krea played the others and they all relayed a similar statement.

Finally she played Endu's transmission. "Come to the Hall of the Guardians." Endu was breathing heavily. There was a dripping noise in the background. "Your lives are in danger." The message ended after that, leaving the two unsure of what their next course of action would be.

"Contact Cordesseye. I'll call Endu." Riley ordered as he put a fresh pair of clothes on.

"Endu?" He asked as the transmission began. All he heard was heavy breathing and the same dripping noise as before. There was a muffled voice in the background. "Hello?"

"Tell them." The voice in the background said.

"Run! You're in danger! Get out of here! Don't come back!" Endu screamed. "Don't look back-"

There was a gunshot and a thud. "Wrong answer." Was all the muffled voice said. Whoever was speaking got closer to Endu's communicator, for their voice was now much clearer.

"Come to the Hall of the Guardians. You have one hour." The call ended, leaving both Krea and Riley stunned. Riley looked over to Krea.

"Call Cordesseye, now."

"Did they just kill-" She began. Riley cut her off.

"Call him!"

Krea called and waited for the transmission to begin. "Krea, thank God!" Cordesseye said. "You need to get out of there, now! They tried to catch me at the hangar, but I was able to flee in time."

"Why are they doing this?" Krea asked.

"They want Syman and Prophet and they think we know where they are. Get Riley and Endu out of there!"

"Cordesseye… Endu's dead. They killed him."

There was a long silence. "I'll send you my coordinates once you're out of Earth's orbit." The transmission ended.

"What the fuck is happening?" Riley asked as he equipped his armor. Krea did the same.

"I don't know. We need to get out of here, now."

As silence fell on the room, they heard arguing outside. "Now!" A voice screamed. The door exploded and two Guardians charged in. "Hands up!" They screamed.

Krea refused and pushed the Guardian. He punched her in the face, sending her to the floor. At that moment, Riley snapped. He grabbed his knife from the table and tackled the Guardian, breaking his visor with the blade. Blood sprayed everywhere as the knife tore the man's face to shreds.

The other Guardian turned to shoot but Krea grabbed him and shoved him into the window. As he slammed into the window, he broke it, sending his body flailing down to the ground far below the Tower.

Riley pulled his knife from the Guardian's face and sighed as he leaned against the bed, which was stained with drops of blood. The Guardian's body disappeared as he was revived by his ghost. "We don't have much time." Riley said as he rose, grabbing his rifle.

"Yeah. Let's go." Krea summoned her ghost, who didn't speak a word to her. Her ship soared down and she materialized inside of it. Riley followed. As they left Earth's atmosphere, they stopped in orbit.

"Do you think they destroyed Endu's ghost?"

"I have no doubt in my mind." Riley said. "Call Cordesseye. Tell him to send the coordinates."

Krea called her partner and he answered. "Sending them now. Good luck."

"We'll need it." Krea said as she ended the call. A message came through with the coordinates and her navigation system was updated. "Follow me." She told Riley as she made the jump to Cordesseye's location.

Syman was relaxing in the bedchamber Craugh had allowed him. His armor was removed and he sat comfortably in his pants and shirt. A glass of some odd liquid concoction was in his hand and he took a sip.

With a sigh, he put the glass down. Before he could lie down in bed, there was a knock at his door. He opened it to see Craugh. A smile formed on his lips. Something about her made him happy. She was extremely beautiful, but the scars all over her face were the most interesting thing about her. They seemed to hide millions of stories, so much mystery, just painted onto her face.

"Hey there Wolcott." She said.

"Craugh." Syman said in acknowledgment. "What are you doing here?"

"Thought I'd come give you a visit. Can I come in?" She asked. Syman nodded. Craugh sat down at the table and finished off Syman's alcoholic drink. "Good stuff."

"Yeah. Where'd you get it?"

"I found it here, surprisingly."

"Really? It tastes so fresh." Syman proclaimed.

Craugh laughed and sat on the bed. "That it does. So what do you think of the Legion?"

"They're great. Well-trained."

"They're all former Guardians." Craugh said before she took a sip. "We started as a band of mercenaries and began taking in exiles. Finally, we became what we are today."

"What are you?"

"An army, and tell me Syman Wolcott, why do you need an army?" Craugh asked as she made eye contact with Syman.

"There's a Fallen House. A new one, anyway. The Kell has a grudge against me and has captured my little brother."

"How daring." Craugh said as she finished the drink and took Syman's.

"I suppose." Syman said as he watched Craugh gulp down the drink.

"Well, thanks for the drink." Craugh said as she stood. Her first step was wobbly and her second sent her stumbling. Syman managed to jump up and catch her before she fell, but he too was a bit tipsy and stumbled.

He fell to the floor with her in his arms. It didn't take long for him to realize that she was asleep, so he lifted her and rolled her into his bed. Drunk and too tired to do anything else, Syman flopped down beside her and fell asleep.

He woke up to the sound of the door sliding open. There was a soldier standing there, surprised. "Wolcott, Legion-Commander." The soldier greeted.

"What is it?" Craugh mumbled as she sat up.

"I have a message for Wolcott, ma'am."

"Well what are you waiting for?" She asked.

The soldier nodded. "Your presence has been requested by Prophet. He waits for you in the old war room."

"Thank you, soldier." Syman said as he slid out of bed.

The door closed and Craugh sat up. "How did I get here?"

"You came to visit last night, you got drunk-"

"Did we fuck?"

"No. I don't think so."

"Oh. Good, I guess." Craugh rubbed her eyes and climbed out of bed. "Thanks for the drink, and the bed. I haven't sleep that well in years."

"Glad to help." Syman said as he put his armor on. "I'll see you around." He then walked towards the door.

Craugh nodded and yawned, flopping back down on the pillow.

When Syman finally found the war room, he was surprised. It was the only place in the whole bunker that hadn't been renovated from its pre-Collapse design.

"I still hear them." Prophet said as he emerged from the darkness. His metallic hand pressed a button on the pedestal in the center of the room. Suddenly a holographic map flickered to life. It displayed the known planets, including the Reef. "This map still labels all these planets as colony planets. Sadly, those no longer exist. Mars and Venus are nothing but wastelands and relics of a time long past…"

"Are you okay?" Syman asked, surprised by his friend's odd behavior.

"In a way, I am unsettled." Prophet turned to Syman. "There was a bounty update, today. From the Speaker, not the Vanguard."

"And?"

"We are wanted."

"What?" Syman said in surprise.

"For over ten thousand glimmer and a Vanguard package. Every able-bodied Guardian on Earth is now scrambling to find us."

"Then we need to find Maren, and sort this out."

"Any chance of us getting out of this will disappear the longer we wait. I'll talk to Alyssa. One we locate Maren and the rest of the House, we're moving out."

Syman nodded and turned to leave, but curiosity stopped him. "Prophet, why do you call her Alyssa?"

"It's a long story, but that is her birth name. She must've changed names upon joining the Legion."

Wolcott nodded and left, returning to his bedchamber. Craugh was still there, however now she was at the terminal on the table. "You're still here? Shouldn't you be training your men or something?"

"I should be, but I don't feel like it. Someone else will take over."

Syman laughed and sat down on the bed, pouring himself a glass of water. "Would you like a glass?" He asked.

"No thanks." Craugh said as she pressed more buttons on the terminal.

"What're you doing?"

"Math."

"Like just random problems?"

"Yep."

"Why?"

"Keeps my brain on edge." Craugh said as she turned the terminal off. Syman nodded in understanding as he took a sip of water.

"So what's your story?"

"My story?" Craugh asked as she spun around in the chair to face Wolcott. "It's long."

Syman chuckled as he leaned against the wall. "I'm not going anywhere."

"Right, well, I was a Guardian, like yourself. In fact Prophet approached me one day at the Tower and said he needed help. I was a young, confused little girl, so I offered my service. It was the first time I had ever been off of Earth, but at Prophet's side, I felt safe. He and I worked our way through a horde of Cabal to enter this bunker."

Craugh stood up and poured herself a glass of water. "The door just barely creaked open. Inside were the charred corpses of humans. Old rusted Exo shells as well. We searched the whole place, but Prophet never found 'what he was looking for'."

Taking a sip, she sat back down. "I didn't bother to ask what he was looking for, so I just wandered around. I ended up in the war room, where I took notice that there were no corpses, just a terminal flickering, projecting its last light. I stripped its hard drive and ended up with a single thing."

"Which was?"

"This." Craugh plugged something into the terminal and on the screen was a schematic for a servitor. At the top it was labeled "Subject Prime 001", the only words on the whole schematic that were in English.

"A Fallen schematic?" Syman inquired.

"No, it was created by humans. It is written out in Latin, an old language that very few know anymore. The only who can still fluently speak Latin are Exos. Extremely old Exos."

"Could that be what Prophet was looking for?"

"I'm not sure. Maybe. The only thing I can read is Omen-VII, which if I am correct, translates into Romanian as Augur-7."

"That's quite an odd find, Craugh."

"Yeah, isn't it?" She said as she stood. "Mind if I change?"

"Not at all." Syman said as he finished off his glass of water. Craugh then pulled her shirt off, revealing her large breasts. Syman's gaze was fixated on them and he couldn't stop staring. It was then that he realized just how attracted he was to her.

"Never seen a pair of tits, Wolcott?" She said as she laughed. She dug around in a drawer and retrieved a white shirt, which she pulled on, covering her breasts.

"Sorry." Syman said, ashamed.

"Don't be, I'd stare at you if you were naked too." Craugh said as she sat down beside him on the bed. They both laughed and then she leaned on him. "I like you, Syman. I won't lie."

"I think I feel the same."

"Do you now?" Craugh said with a giggle. She turned towards him and grinned. "Prove it."

Syman, unsure what to do, pushed his face against hers. The kiss became more intense with each second as a burning passion boiled over inside of the two. Syman's hand went under her shirt and up to her breast as her hand moved to remove his pants.

Suddenly there was a knock at the metallic door and the two stopped immediately. "Who is it?" Syman called out.

"It's me. Is Craugh with you?" Prophet asked.

Syman looked at the Legion-Commander and she shook her head 'no'. Syman relayed the message.

"Damn. Where is she?" Prophet cursed as he wandered down the hall. Craugh then turned to Syman and smiled as they resumed where they left off.

200+ YEARS EARLIER

"You are the most elite we have. You are the only ones we can trust to complete this mission. Are you aware of this?" Augur-7 asked the row of Exo soldiers.

"Yes sir!" They all replied in unison.

"Then get on that shuttle."

"Yes sir!" They all replied, loading onto the ship. Augur grabbed Aegis-9 by the arm.

"9, I need you to listen."

"Sir?"

"I'm trusting you the most. You aren't like these men. You aren't a mindless machine. You're smart and capable. Make sure they come out alive, son."

"Yes sir, Augur-7." Aegis-9 replied as he boarded the dropship.

Augur-7 returned to the operations room, where he could track their progress. According to the map, they had set down at the first checkpoint and had split up into two teams.

He then turned to the humans at the control panels. "Release the test subjects. Aegis team should have no problem with them." The men nodded and pressed a multitude of buttons. The radar then indicated multiple hostile lifeforms converging on Aegis team.

However the presence of the servitor and its dreg support team attracted the attention of other Fallen. The men in the control room gave Augur nervous looks. The squadron commander pressed the button and activated a secure transmission channel.

"Aegis-9, do you read?" He said.

The rest of the conversation forced Augur to feign surprise about the presence of the Fallen. Giving Aegis-9's team permission to fall back, he ended the transmission. He then turned to the men in the control room.

"This must be kept a secret. Do you understand?"

The men nodded quickly and Augur suspected some of them were not sincere with their reply. He then grabbed a bottle of strong alcohol liquid that stimulated his synthetic nerves. After four quick shots, he sat back.

Then his eyes drifted to the radar to see that only Aegis-9's vitals were still active. "Oh no…" Augur said as 9's final transmission came through. Augur-7 sat in shock as he realized what he had done.

"I repeat… mission failed." Were the last words Aegis-9 spoke before the transmission ended. Augur sat back in his chair.

"Gentlemen, return to your quarters. Someone get Captain Fulvatis down here, please." Augur said, face in his hands. The room cleared out quickly, giving Augur a short period of silence until the Captain of security, Fulvatis, arrived.

"You summoned me, sir?"

"This place must be… terminated." He said.

"Shall I evacuate, sir?"

"No. Run incendiary protocols. No evacuation necessary."

Fulvatis stood back and abruptly nodded. "Right away, sir."

Moments later, the security crew and Augur-7 gathered at the door to the bunker. Augur stepped outside the door. "Run the protocol, Captain." He ordered. The Captain pressed a button on his communicator and turned to leave, only to see the door close on him.

Augur-7 fell against the door as he listened to the screams of the men inside. The fire torched them, burnt them until they were nothing but a crisp that was once human flesh. Augur used his administrative access to lock the doors of the bunker, so only he could enter again.

With that, he turned away from the bunker, wandering into the sandy dunes of Mars.

Krea materialized on Mars, next to Riley. "Where's Cordesseye?" He asked as she appeared. Krea shrugged and activated her transmitter.

"Cordesseye, do you read?"

"Follow the valley. You'll find me." He said.

"Got it." Krea said before ending the transmission. She summoned her sparrow. "Let's go." Riley followed on his sparrow as they zoomed through the massive sandy valleys of Mars.


End file.
